J Coll Physicians Surg Pak. 2026 Feb;36(2):240-247. doi: 10.29271/jcpsp.2026.02.240.
ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVE: To identify the motivational factors and barriers influencing undergraduate (UG) research in a dental college in Pakistan from students’ perspectives using semi-structured interviews.
STUDY DESIGN: A qualitative phenomenological study. Place and Duration of the Study: Nishtar Institute of Dentistry, Multan, Pakistan, from October 2022 to October 2023.
METHODOLOGY: A validated, modified, and pilot-tested Vodopivec questionnaire was distributed among 67 consenting final-year BDS students as a pre-test to assess their knowledge of research. The pre-test results were calculated manually. Based on these results, a study sample of 20 students was selected: 10 students with the top scores and 10 students with the bottom scores. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with these students until data saturation was achieved. Thematic analysis was performed using NVivo software.
RESULTS: Twelve themes were identified by students, including both research barriers and promoting factors. Each theme comprised several subthemes. The major themes included the poor status of UG research, lack of institutional vision, and insufficient funding. Subthemes included no research-related coursework, favouritism by teachers, and inadequate laboratory infrastructure with untrained research faculty. The incorporation of research projects into the community dentistry subject was suggested in the final year BDS programme.
CONCLUSION: There is a suboptimal status of UG research in public-sector dental colleges in Pakistan, with few motivational factors and numerous barriers.
KEY WORDS: Undergraduate research, Motivational factors, Barriers, Curriculum, Dentistry.
PMID:41689326 | DOI:10.29271/jcpsp.2026.02.240
